A/N: I will not be taken down by fanfiction . net! This is a repost of my old story. I don't have possession of all of it, because I wrote it midway through getting a new laptop. I will ask my cowriter, but I don't hold out too much hope. This was taken down because it had the word "b-tch" in the title. Seriously? I lost all of your lovely comments!
Chapter 1: Hatchala (The Beginning)
It didn't start out this way. And it wasn't supposed to end this way. Looking back, Tony couldn't positively identify when it began, but it was sure turning out to be a spectacular finale.
She was not the type of woman to go down quietly or without a fight.
July
Shayla Jordan was the perfect woman for Tony DiNozzo. She was smart, beautiful, and she picked up obscure movie references. She didn't give him crap about the hours he had to work, or the dates he had to postpone, and didn't get either grossed out or overly excited about his work.
It wasn't long before most of their free time was spent with one another, to the point that they did their grocery shopping and laundry together.
She didn't make any demands – which was good. He was still Tony DiNozzo. But when he was away from her, he had the unfamiliar sense of being alone, which didn't used to suck.
September
She moved in.
December
It was a water leak in her apartment. Tony hadn't meant to move quite that fast (no lobotomy), but when a woman in distress asked him for help, well…Let it never be said that Tony did not help a damsel in distress. Especially one that looked that good in a nurse's outfit.
It seemed to work perfectly at first. The only thing that really changed was the convenience factor – no more commute to sex.
January
Tony always put off introducing a new woman to his team. The best she could hope for was that a case would call them away mid-interrogation. The fact that she survived a full two hours with them, including a detailed description of what Abby was capable of (which still made Tony flinch), was a testament to how right this woman was for him.
She wasn't even intimidated by the silent ex-Mossad agent glaring at her from across the table. She seemed to have no problem with the women Tony worked so closely with every day, despite the fact that Abby jumped him when he walked through the door. Instead, she greeted Abby warmly, and asked her where she got her boots.
The only problem that night was Tony was worried Ducky was going to try to steal his woman. Tony was good, but he didn't know how to compete with the Duck-man.
February
He's not sure exactly when it started.
June
He couldn't fault her logic. He did have a physically demanding job, and he wasn't in the best physical shape anymore. He'd always attributed that to the plague, but she was right. Too many pizzas and his love affair with carbs were wreaking havoc on his metabolism. Hell, even Probie was slim-Tim now.
He could work out a little more, and eat a little healthier.
McGee made a comment about it, the next time the team (minus Gibbs, of course) went out, but the conversation quickly turned to Ziva and her father – he was apparently regretting his decision to let his best asset go. He was trying to talk Director Vance into letting the operative he trained work for Mossad again.
It wasn't anything Tony was really worried about – she was a US citizen, and Gibbs wouldn't let anything happen to her again.
August
Gibbs did have to save his ass more than once. Shayla was right to…suggest he work a little harder. He just wished she hadn't been such a bitch about it.
September
He didn't want to lose her. She was right – she had stuck with him for more than a year now, and she deserved a little give on his part. It couldn't hurt to forgo his trip with the boys to spend time with her.
And he did spend every day with his team, so a few cancellations for after-work drinks weren't a big sacrifice. She was right about that too.
Besides – Ziva's problems with her father were taking up more time. There weren't as many invitations as there used to be.
October
It kind of hurt to realize that he had always been the one to initiate team get-togethers. No one seemed to want to hang out with him unless he suggested it. Maybe it was best to stay home with Shayla.
November
The names hurt. He didn't like it shoved in his face exactly how much of a screw-up he was. Gibbs and his father took care of that just fine.
But hell. Didn't he call people names now and then?
He still called Probie…Probie. And McGoo. And McGoogle. And McTattle.
It just wasn't the same as shithead, useless prick, and fuck-up.
December
It wasn't really necessary to take the mail key away. It was only the one time he forgot to tell her about that bill, and he paid the fine.
But it was her home too, she'd lived here for more than a year, and if she wanted to take that responsibility off his back, fine.
January
He didn't really want a joint account. After watching his father milk one woman after another out of their hard earned money, he knew it was a bad idea. But it wasn't worth the fight.
He could go in to more detail, of course. He didn't really forget any of the times she belittled, insulted, or emasculated him. But it wouldn't really make a difference now, and it certainly wouldn't change how it ended.